Generally speaking, the portions and structural components of a human ear with which both the present invention and the invention disclosed in the aforesaid prior application are most closely concerned, are well known to those skilled in the art. Since the basic ear structure and its manner of functioning, as well as the basic structural configurations of a number of known cochlear electrode implants previously designed to overcome the effects of sensorineural hearing loss, are fully described and illustrated in my prior application, the entire introductory and background portion of the disclosure of the said prior application is incorporated in the present application by this reference.
The cochlear electrode implant assemblies disclosed in my prior application were designed, through the provision of a separately curvable auxiliary positioning member connected at its leading and trailing end regions to the corresponding end regions of the electrode carrier, to enable the electrode carrier of such a cochlear electrode implant assembly to be positioned optimally in the cochlea of a human ear, that is to say, so as to ensure that in the fully implanted state of the assembly, the electrical contact elements or electrodes are located in the closest possible proximity to the modiolus and the ganglion cells. In conjunction therewith, the means by which the electrode carrier and the auxiliary positioning member of an implant assembly according to my prior invention are connected to each other were designed also to lock the assembly in place within the cochlea at the end of the insertion stage so as to firmly and stably secure the assembly against movement in and withdrawal from the cochlea.
Given the structural and functional characteristics of the means disclosed in my prior application for connecting the electrode carrier of the implant assembly to the associated positioning member at their respective leading and trailing end regions, however, it can be seen that a removal of the implanted assembly or a part thereof from the patient's ear, should that become necessary or advisable (for example, for purposes of repair and/or replacement or for allowing a diagnostic or surgical procedure to be performed on or in the patient's ear), is very difficult to achieve and may even be impossible without a destruction of the implant assembly.